Skip to main content

diamonds are forever..



I decided to make a commitment to finishing some UFO's - unfinished objects...When I was packing up to move I kept finding interesting stuff I had started and then got bored off or for some reason run out of motivation...

This quilt is one I started when we moved into Togston almost five years ago- its hand pieced using diamonds and squares and a mixture of mostly cotton green fabrics, some started as curtains and clothes and I ended up buying a bolt to add some extra pattern and the backing.  It took me many many long winter nights in front of rubbish television first cutting out the diamonds from old christmas cards and then tacking the fabric to each individual template and then sewing approx 500 pieces together. the quilt is  about 75 inches square and then after all that work - I just didn't like it at all any more!!! I think I just got bored with the colours and endless stitching... any way it got shelved for the next rainy day!



It went to live at the top of the stairs unfinished with the rest of the quilts (all finished and rotated round various beds from time to time)... About two years ago I got it out and put some wadding in and the backing on - I hadn't discovered spray on glue at this point so I got further frustrated and attached the three layers together using massive tacking - safety pins and a lot of rolling about on the floor - which incidentally wasn't really a big enough space to work.

Then this week - instead of rain I have been, as much of the country has been, snow bound  - still sorting out my new work space, unpacking those potential interesting bits and pieces I picked this UFO and decided to crack on and see if I could finish it off for our new bedroom.

This is my first time doing actual quilting on the sewing machine - it was quite challenging getting the massive amount of fabric to do what I wanted it to do but after a while I got the hang of it and managed to do random quilting on selected diamonds and squares and after a few hours of what I have to say was bordering on tedious it started to take shape and my enthusiasm picked up. I had to unpick odd bits where I wasn't happy with how the fabric lay and as I got towards the edges it got easier.  


I had used all the scraps when I'd been quilting to make a bias edging and that coupled with the trimmings from the finished quilt made enough for me to bind the edge - which was another fairly boring task but it finished it off very nicely and it looks really nice and is definitely back in favour. plus a great sense of achievement!!! 

Interestingly our new house is so warm and cosy we don't really need a quilt on the bed bit it does look nice!!!

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Alesund

Our final destination stop was Alesund. This is a very pretty town in southern Norway built on a peninsula. All the houses are painted pretty colours and a lot of the architecture is all very Art Nouveau based. This is because the town itself was completely burnt to the ground In 1904 by a fire for which they never found the original cause. The whole town had to be rebuilt and this became a huge National Effort and a lot of prominent and up and coming architects flocked to the town to stick there 20 pence in. Consequently the town is very heavily Art Nouveau which was very fashionable at the time. There is this wonderful Museum just off the harbour which is a very beautiful Art Nouveau house. It has amazing panelling, doors, wallpaper, and it's all furnished with beautiful art Nouveau Furniture. It also house a collection of of enameled Art Nouveau Trinkets,boxes, spoons, jewellery, very very beautiful.   There is an interesting collection of old books and paintings a...
1 comment
Read more

Isle of Bute

 Another Landmark Trust tick - this time Ascog House on the Isle of Bute - stunning as always... a very comfortable warm accommodation for the usual 8 suspects. This time we had a wee tower house for Dr Fred and myself - a lovely bedroom up the stairs with a big window and a bathroom al to ourselves - having said that all the other bedrooms in the big house were large and serviced by two bathrooms so there was no hardship for any visitors!   The grounds of the house were very extensive with ponds and secret passages - hidden paths and we even spotted a deer late afternoon - there were lots of old features - ornate staircases and a lovely hidden door which I did a quick sketch of. Bute provided quite a lot of entertainment as well - the weather was kind and we did a a muddy wander down the south of the Island taking in St Blanes Monastery and Kilcannon Bay.  The views were spectacular and it was fabulous to be out in the fresh (and it was fresh on the tops) air and we...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kalamata and random stuff

We suddenly got busy catching up with old friends met on previous cruises - and making some new friends who were working this cruise. Dr Fred got organised arranging Stargazing sessions and future talks, while I'm embroidering a coat!  All this takes time and energy inbetween being available for food..... It was formal night in the 1920s style with the Captain's Cocktail party. So we donned our gladrags, smartened ourselves up and went meet the captain and have a to drink in the Neptune theatre before dinner. I have to say I'm quite impressed with the effort that people go to on these formal nights and some people have some amazing clothes And it was particularly good this night because of the 1920s theme They were an awful lot of headbands with feathers in them but they did look good and some of the frocks were just absolutely stunning.  They've refurbished the selfservice area. Its now known as the Thistle - and it's very pleasant - al...
Post a Comment
Read more